Bridge guard



Patented Jan. 8, 1946 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE BRIDGE GUARD' Carl G. Gottholm, Malden, Mass.

Application October 19, 1944, Serial No. 559,356

3 Claims.

My invention relates to an improvement in the safety device used on all railroads everywhere, called a bridge Warning or bridge guard. This device is installed a certain distance from and both sides of a bridge or other structure which spans the railroad tracks. The object is to warn railroad brakemen of the approach to such bridge in time for them to climb down to safety before the car they are riding passes under the bridge.

The objects of my improvement in this warning device are a saving in cost and critical material as well as labor in installation over any customary construction used at present and also a means of replacing an individual pendant when it gets bent or otherwise needs to be replaced.

In the accompanying drawing,

Figure 1 is an elevation showing a bridge guard as it is customarily installed on a double track railroad. The construction for more tracks or less is very similar.

Figure 2 is an enlarged view showing my simple method of construction. Figure 3 is a view of my original tool With which a track workman can single-handed while standing solidly on the ground below the warning device, remove a defective pendant and replace With a new one.

My device is very light in weight, only eleven (11) pounds instead of approximately fifty (50) pounds for a single track unit. Two units can easily be sup-ported on a single 1/2" wire rope.

The spacing hanger 2 is preformed, making one complete turn around the supporting wire rope 4 between each hanger loop 3 so it will be a snug fit on the wire rope 4, and is made in sections convenient in length. These sections are assembled at the site where it is to be installed by threading a sufficient number of sections on the wire rope. Then they are firmly fastened to each other and to the wire rope by a simple carriage bolt through loop 5. These hanger sections are made of a stiff steel wire and when assembled properly are very rigid and resist the tendency of a single pendant l swinging up over the wire rope support when struck by any cause whatever.

The pendants l are formed of a stiff steel wire. The wire is bent at one end to form a loop having a hooked or curved end portion to engage l and .can be lifted out of hanger loop 3 by the spur l.

To replace a pendant the procedure is as follows. The loop at end of pendant is inserted in the loop holder 8 at thetop of the tool with open end up and supported by guide 9 as shown in Figure 3. Then the latch 10 is inserted as shown in Figure 3, thus firmly fastening the pendant to the tool so that it may be easily handled. The tool 6 has a handle made of suitable tubing in sections so that it may be made any suitable length in order to reach the heighth necessary. Then the tool with pendant projecting out as shown is raised to the proper height and the loop of pendant hooked through hanger loop 3 all the way up to holder 8 when a sharp pull down releases the latch IO and pendant is left hanging With its loop open as I. from falling by a length of suitable cord fastened at l2. Then the spur l on tool is inserted in open loop and given a quarter turn which closes the loop of pendant firmly.

I claim:

1. A bridge guard comprising in combination, a supporting wire rope, a, spacing hanger made of stiif steel wire having hanger loops which hanger is wound around said supporting wire rope, pendants made of stiff steel wire, each of said pendants having a loop for supporting the pendants in the hanger loops, and each of said pendant loops having a hooked end portion engaging the pendant.

2. A bridge guard comprising in combination, a supporting rope, a hanger made of stiff wirelike material having spaced hanger loops which hanger is wound around said supporting rope, a plurality of pendants made of stiff steel wire, each of said pendants having a loop supporting the pendants in the hanger loops, and each of said pendant loops having a hooked end portion engaging the pendant to maintain said pendant loops closed.

3. Abridge guard comprising in combination, a supporting rope, a hanger made of stiff Wirelike material having spaced hanger loops Which hanger'is wound around said supporting rope, a, plurality of pendants made of stiff steel Wire,v each of said pendants having a loop supporting the pendants in the hanger loops, and each of said pendant loops having a hooked end portion engaging the pendant to maintain said pendant loops closed, and a loop on the end of said hanger whereby it may be attached to an adjacent hanger.

CARL G. GOTTHOLM.

The latch is held I 

